Customer Reviews

Hudson Taylors Spiritual Secret

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This book refreshed my spirit. It reminded me how good God is and how all things work together for good to them that love God. This book included excerpts and stories of Mr. Taylor's exploits in China.

I was amazed at the simplicity and honesty of the writing. It included his coming to faith, his struggles as a Christian, and him abiding in Jesus Christ in different situations. During times of crisis and during times of rejoicing, the constant in Mr. Taylor's life was the faithfulness of a loving God. I was deeply moved and humbled by his life.

Whether you want to be a missionary or just wondering what God's will is for your life, this book provides insight through the example of Hudson Taylor's life. An awesome read!

I've read other biographies of other christian giants & pioneers, but this one stands apart because of how well the Taylors and friends documented their lives. Interspersed within this succinct yet colorful biography, the authors (Hudson Taylor's son and daugther-in-law) share numerous letters written to and from Mr. Taylor throughout his life. These precious letters prove to be jam packed with spiritual wisdom and insight. They provide us with an unique "inside look" into a practical man who was utterly captured by God's purposes.

I read this book years ago at the age of fifteen. It truly changed my life. This book, the books of Amy Carmichael, and Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis have all been vital in the direction which my life has taken.

Elizabeth Skoglund author of Divine Recycling: Living Above Your Circumstances

This little book is huge in terms of its presentation of a life lived exclusively by faith in God. It presents the life of a man who learned through the challenges and trials of 50 years of missionary outreach to inland China the faithfulness of God to supply every need. This book will touch your heart; it will challenge you with respect to your own commitment to trusting in the faithfulness of God, and it will encourage you to live by faith through the example of an ordinary man who did just that.

It is very difficult to express my innermost feelings as I read this book. The love of a man for His God and the people of China is unfathomable. His intimacy with his Heavenly Father is a relationship to be desired and sought after. A love for a people God instilled within him. Words cannot express what is in between the covers of this book. His work in China will last because of the everlasing God that he served and China will never be the same. He and his family gave all. His work goes on in the Spirit which he was so in one with. Only God knows how many people have and will be touched because of the love he had for his God and the people whom he served so many years not out of duty but out of love, with sacrifice and great cost to himself and family. A sacrifice that they did not even consider as one but as a privilege. This is not one you will read once but many times and encourage others to read.

This is beyond doubt the most powerful book ever written on mission. I make this bold generalization after more than 45 years of practicing and teaching missions. Anyone traveling overseas to engage in mission work should read this book first.

I was impressed with not only how much Taylor loved the Chinese people. But how much he trusted God for all of the needs in his life. And all of the things he accomplished. The medical center he established. And how he trusted God for the medical supplies. An inspiring little book.

Hudson Taylor was a true spiritual giant who didn't just talk the talk, he walked the walk in every way possible. He did so in such a humble and self-sacrificing way that one can only admire and respect his courage and ultimate faith.

British-born, Mr. Taylor lived in the 18 and 1900s era and felt led to a life as a missionary to China. He became a pioneer in many ways and one of those ways was to adopt the dress and customs of the people he so loved, a practice he was sometimes criticized for.

Never before have I read such a biography of a life more driven by faith in spite of the daily trials he dealt with. He was an inspiring example to any of faith.

Near the end of his life that was mostly spent in China, he returned to the people, from a brief time overseas and was greeted: "And oh, how the people responded - both missionaries and the Chinese - everywhere he went. He was called `Venerable Father' and `Benefactor of China' by many who came to greet him. Crowds gathered to hear him whenever he spoke and sometimes just to see him pass." Of course Hudson Taylor took this in stride, so humble, self-effacing and gentle was he.

This well-written book is full of details chronicling Mr. Taylor's life, some in the form of the eloquent letters he sent back home. The last paragraph ends with his daughter-in-law's account at his death: "...and oh, the look of rest and calm that came over the dear face was wonderful! The weight of years seemed to pass away in a few moments. The weary lines vanished. He looked like a child quietly sleeping, and the very room seemed full of unutterable peace." - a tribute of a life given totally to the God he loved and served.

"Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret" is an amazing story of an incredible man and well worth the read. If you are a person of faith, you will definitely feel blessed.

I just finished reading this excellent book for the third time since becoming a Christian 33 years ago and would recommend it to anyone wishing to be challenged in their faith and dependence on God. The book is the story of English missionary Hudson Taylor, his calling to bring the Gospel to the multitudes of China, the creation of the China Inland Mission and so much more.

The book follows the life of Hudson Taylor from before his conversion, through his medical education and his calling to the mission field of China. It continues through the challenges and obstacles of getting to China, of establishing a base there and learning how to bring to the Gospel to the Chinese people. His decision to trust in God's provision in every area of his life and the resulting struggles are intimately portrayed in a way everyone can relate too. Hudson Taylor became one of the first foreign missionaries to adopt the dress and customs of the Chinese people in order to better better reach them. The story details his faithfulness to God through a variety of obstacles and challenges including the death of his first wife, the death of a child, the threat of physical harm, even death and during periods of great want and need. Yet, we don't see Mr. Taylor wallowing in self-pity or running back home to England. Rather, he sees God's faithfulness even in the trials and renews his faith in God.

However, though the theme throughout the book is missons, the secret it contains is not limited to evangelism or missions. It is relevant to us all. Hudson Taylor's spiritual secret was not his innovative, ground-breaking missions techniques nor his faith missions approach to support. It was his undying faith and belief that if God had called him to bring the Gospel to China, then God was also able to provide whatever he needed to do so, be it money, transportation, physical safety, co-workers, even the resulting fruit itself. Mr. Taylor's deep personal struggles and choice to believe God for what He promised is both inspiring and challenging. If Hudson Taylor could continue to believe God in the face of such unbelievable challenges, then we also can trust Him since we serve the same God.

Very well written and worthy of commendation. I recommend in for all, especially to those who are seeking, with hope, a trophy of God's dispensations in the diverse and many operations of this world about them, and in them.
There certainly is a refuge in the midst of the storms, who is Christ Jesus...but, sometimes, it is neddful to direct thy bow to face the storm, and to ride the waves right into the storm. It is there, that we may find an "eye" in the storm, with peace and tranquility our anchors and mainstay.